


FLAMES

by atphoom



Category: offgun
Genre: Angst, Character Death, Fluff, M/M, Romance, Slow Burn
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-22
Updated: 2020-09-22
Packaged: 2021-03-08 01:54:19
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,519
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26597893
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/atphoom/pseuds/atphoom
Summary: Gun never had a constant dream or goal of what he wants to be. He just keeps on riding on the waves not knowing that it would lead him to the place he once abandoned in his heart; there he met Off.
Relationships: Off Jumpol Adulkittiporn/Gun Atthaphan Phunsawat
Kudos: 6





	FLAMES

**Author's Note:**

> This is the first fic that I've written. If you feel like that the story is lacking as the story progresses, feel free to comment or dm me at twitter @atphoom. English is not my native language, apologies in advance for any grammatical and typographical errors. Thank you for giving my fic a chance to be read.

**2017**

“Last 10 seconds” the sound of calculators resonated throughout the room; simultaneously, Gun hears his heart as it beats faster from feeling the pressure. This is the final round of the competition, and the question asked was also the last. Gun is currently in fourth place and is 4 points behind the score of the person in first place. He is the only one with the remaining chance to answer the question. Time is ticking, and he only has less than 5 seconds to answer. “287,000” Gun nervously shouted as he buzzed the button when there is only 1 second remaining.

“287,000 is correct!” a group of students screamed happily and were jumping out of joy. Gun turned around and look where the noise is coming from; there he sees his friends. Their faces beaming as they feel very proud of their friend who won the competition. He smiled back to his friends and his happiness is visible through his eyes. This is the first time his face shone since the competition has started.

“Congratulations! We’re very proud of you!” New said as he pulls Gun into a hug. Krist and Alice were behind New, their smiles cannot be contained. “Thank you so much. But as I said you didn’t have to come here.” Gun replied. “Jane needs our support more”

“I’m fine, don’t worry about me” a sudden voice was heard from Krist’s phone. “Besides, you all can go straight to the venue since the pageant proper will start at 8pm.” Jane reminded them.

~~\-------------------------------------------~~

Gun and his friends arrived at the venue where the pageant will be held; just beside it is a mall where they chose to kill time. “Gun!” he stopped daydreaming when he heard his name being called by Krist “are you okay?”

Throughout their way to the event place, the short boy was staring at the medal he won lost in his thoughts. This is the first time he felt such fervor; and for the first time, he felt passionate about achieving something and he did care about winning. He is now a 4th year accounting student and few months from now, he will graduate with his friends. During those 4 years of his college life, he only cared about having fun with his friends and not caring about his grades whether he will pass or fail. Whether he will admit it or not, he is the smartest in their batch and his friends knew this all along; heck, he can graduate with Latin honor and become the batch valedictorian if only he is diligent enough to actually care about it.

The first thing that they look for is a restaurant. “Can we decide faster which restaurant we will go to?” Gun said. “My stomach is killing me. I haven’t eaten anything since my competition started.”

“We have 1.5 hours until the start of Jane’s competition.” Alice reminded them “There’s a fast-food restaurant nearby. Let’s just eat there.”

“Still feeling happy huh?” New nudged his friend as he noticed the smile on Gun’s face, which shows his dimples. “Such a pity, you’ll only be graduating as a Dean’s Awardee” the former sighed as he feels that it’s such a waste “I know you can do better”

“I’ll be wearing my toga and cap, and go on the stage to receive my diploma. Why would you pity me? Gun furrowed his brows, confused as to why his friend would say that. “And no, I will not do better. Why would I add pressure to myself when I know I’ll not be happy? Yes, I’ll do better academically but personally? I think not” At that point, New realized that his friend have things locked in the dark. “I’m not saying that we should all do our bare minimum, I’m just saying that we should do what makes us happy as long as it does not compromise other’s happiness. Doing our best is important, but sometimes we should take a step back and rethink what ‘best’ means for ourselves.” The short boy smiled as he saw the plate of foods that Krist and Alice are holding as they walk straight to their table.

~~\-------------------------------------------~~

“We made it just in time” New said while panting heavily as they ran before the event starts. “We wouldn’t be catching our breath if only we didn’t stop by the cat café” Gun replied hitting the former’s arm lightly.

After eating, they decided to stroll for a bit since there is still time until the competition. The four of them keep walking, looking around trying to familiar themselves since this is the first time they’ve been here.

“Hey, where’s New” they were laughing until Gun noticed that there’s only three of them walking side by side. They looked around for him when their calls are not being answered. “Found him” Krist said before they decide to split up. He saw New inside a café holding a small cat, with a smile on his face. The cat has white fur and sad eyes that when you look at it, you couldn’t bear but to turn soft for it. No wonder New’s eyes sparkle telling that he liked the cat.

“What are you doing?” Gun said as the three of them enter the café. “Look at this cat, isn’t it cute?” New stretched out his arms while holding the cat, bringing it in front of their faces earning a stare from them. “Let’s go, we only have little time until-” Gun stopped what he is saying when he saw Alice and Krist playing with the cats too. “C’mon, we still have 30 minutes” Alice showed her phone showing the time. The former was about to refute when he felt something brushing against his feet. “Alright, fine” he said while staring at the cat below him.

~~\-------------------------------------------~~

“Jane!” the three of her friends called out her name simultaneously. The competition just ended, and they were in the backstage. “Congratulations Ms. MU” New handed out the bouquet of flowers they purchased earlier in the mall. “Thank you!” Jane said as she receives the bouquet. “As expected from THE JANE RAMIDA!” Krist said making them laugh. But they noticed one of them keep glancing, and when they traced to where their friend is looking, they can’t help but smile. It’s like they have telepathy as the four of them only looked at each other, and they already know what they want to tell each other.

“Congratulations Ms. Ramida” a voice suddenly interrupted their conversation. It came from one of the judges of the competition. They all turned to the man who said those words and saw him walking towards them. “You nailed it” the man smiled.

“Thank you, Mr. Adulkittiporn” Jane bowed to him as a sign of respect. “I couldn’t have done it without the support of my friends” she put her arms around the shoulders of her friends and introduced them one by one.

“Nice to meet you all. You can call me Off” he gave them a genuine smile. “What competition have you won?” he noticed the medal hanging from the short boy’s neck.

“…” Gun couldn’t open his mouth to talk. He is still in a daze as he stares at the man appreciating his beauty. Off’s features perfectly fit the description Gun looks for in a man. It’s like the latter is in a typical romantic movie where the scene focuses on the face of the other main character, beaming with light as he smiles, and everything is in slow motion.

“He participated in an accounting quiz bee earlier, and he was declared the champion” New butted in as they waited for his friend to answer but failed. “Oh wow. Congratulations to you too” Off gave the short one another smile which made the latter’s face flushed with redness. “I’ll go first now; my friends are waiting for me. Congratulations again to you two and see you around in university I guess” Off said as he bid goodbye to the group of friends.

“Bye...” Gun said in a soft voice but loud enough for them to hear it. “Finally, I heard your voice” Off laughed and waved his hand goodbye.

~~\-------------------------------------------~~

Off and his friends are on their way home. “Hey, they’re accounting students, aren’t they?” Tay stretched his arms out and displayed the picture in his camera showing the persons he is referring to. He was browsing the pictures he captured earlier in the event when he stumbled upon the picture where Off is talking with Jane and her circle of friends.

“Yeah, I think so.” Off responded as he looks at the picture. “Why did you take this picture?”

“Well you look different here” Tay continue looking through the captured moments.

“How so?” the former asked with a confused face. “I don’t know” the latter just brushed it off. But the new look on his friend’s face is evident. Off was smiling, but it was a different smile that even his friends have not seen.

“I think I know what that look is” Arm said as he looks straight ahead while driving. “That’s the look of a person in love” they all laugh because of what he said. “You should step up your game and make your move faster. The rivalry will be tough, she’s now the Ms. MU”

They’re still laughing when Tay decided to look at the picture one more time. He then noticed something. “Wait, but you’re not staring at her. You’re staring at shorty.” The car put into a stop when the traffic light hits red. Tay showed again the image, and they all looked at it. He turned to look at Off together with Arm and saw the baffled look on his face.

Arm puts his hands on the steering wheel again and drives as the traffic light turns green. After that moment, their way back home went silent.

~~\-------------------------------------------~~

“Off Jumpol Adulkittiporn” New and Gun are in their condo browsing in social media, trying to find some information regarding the said man. “4th year Business Administration student. Batch 2013”

“So, he’s also a graduating student like us. But he already received an opportunity to be one of the judges in the pageant?” Gun asked while lying on his bed. “It’s because he was held as Mr. MU back in 2015” New turned his laptop showing pictures of Off during the competition. It made Gun sit up and look at the pictures. “No wonder he won”

“You know this is the first time I saw you like this” New said. “Like what?” Gun furrowed his eyebrows. “Being this interested in a person” the former pointed out. “I’m just curious, since-” the latter’s sentence was not finished when New interrupted him. “Since he’s your ideal man”

His friends know exactly what Gun looks for. That’s the reason why they didn’t even have second thoughts when they met Off. But there is one thing that they can’t seem to understand.

“So, how many days?” New asked.

“I don’t know, but I’ll give it 1 week”

“Alright.” New sighed heavily. “I’ll inform the rest”

“Inform them? What for?” Gun said while laughing “We’re not musketeers”

“…”

“Stop making a bet for fuck’s sake”

“Too late for that now” New laughs as he showed his phone and sends the message to their group chat

~~\-------------------------------------------~~

Gun arrived early in the university because of the seminar he needed to attend to. “I’m already regretting this decision” he yawned while facing his tablet. He plugged in his earphones and listen to some music until his mind wander as his eyes feel heavy as minute goes by.

A hand was felt nudging his shoulder being the reason for him to open his eyes and waking up to a man staring at him. He stared back at him until he realized that the person beside him is Off.

“Oh, you’re awake now” Off told him. He quickly straightens his back and fix the way he sits. “Gun, right?”

“Yes” Gun smiled at him “Didn’t expect to see you here”. When they departed from the pageant, they haven’t seen each other for 1 week until now.

“Yeah, didn’t expect to see you again” Off laughed “not in this seminar at least”. No one in the room expects to see their friends in the same event, not even one friend. The seminar talks about the exchange program to Taiwan they applied to. It is a program where the candidates will have to go through screening which includes a series of interviews and examinations. All of them in the room passed the interviews and examinations.

“I didn’t know you listen to K-Pop” Off said while putting his notebook and pen in his bag. The seminar has ended, and other people are already getting out of the room until they were the only persons left. “Do you speak their language?”

“No” Gun replied while looking at him “But even though I can’t speak their language, I can understand the message the artist is trying to convey. I mean translations are readily available with the help of internet.” Off noticed how the former’s face brighten up when talking about it. “Also, I’m listening to music to feel comforted in a sense that it would make me feel my emotions more”

“Music is made to be heard and understood, not to be kept inside a soundproof room where no one can hear it but the artist.” Gun added and noticed the way Off nods in agreement. The latter realized that the short one makes sense. He was about to say something when he felt his phone vibrate and noticed that it is almost time for his class. “Well, I better go since my class is going to start soon”

“Sure, sorry for my blabbering” Gun smiled with a hint of little guilt. “It’s okay. It’s fun talking to you” Off told him.

“Oh, by the way” the taller was about to go out of the room when he stopped to tell the shorter something. “Nice smile” Off waved his hands telling him goodbye.

“Huh?” Gun just stood there with a puzzled look, but he felt the heat rushed to his face as he blushed from what the man said.

While walking to his class, Off couldn’t keep his mind from showing the image of Gun smiling. Not when the latter is talking about music, not when he was listening to the speaker, but the moment he keeps replaying in his mind is when he found the boy sleeping with plugged earphones; smiling as if he was dreaming. He sat beside him and didn’t realize he was already staring at his sleeping face. What Off also doesn’t realize is that he was also smiling while looking at Gun, his eyes sparkling.

**2020**

“Did you love me?”

“…”

“Can you do it now? Even just once?”

“…”

“Please?” Gun didn’t want to beg, but the alcohol in his system made him lose control of himself throwing away his pride. He fell down to his knees and his tears just keep rolling down his face.

**Author's Note:**

> Please let me know your thoughts or reactions. You can tag me at twitter @atphoom. Thank you so much!


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